How we consistently achieve 5,000+ sign-ups per month at folk: Our Systematic Growth Approach

It’s no secret that achieving sustainable growth in today’s competitive market requires a strategic and systematic approach. At folk, we’ve developed a multi-channel strategy that consistently drives over 5,000 sign-ups each month. 

In this blog post I'll cover:

• Key channels we use
• Tactics we leverage to achieve these results,
• Insights into how we think about growth as a system.

How we approach growth as a system at folk

At the heart of our success is the mindset of treating growth as a systematic, repeatable process. By leveraging a diverse range of lead generation channels, we ensure a steady flow of potential users while balancing organic and paid efforts. 

Notably, over 40% of our leads come from organic channels, showcasing the power of sustainable growth strategies.

What are our core lead generation channels?

A. Affiliation

Affiliation plays a significant role in driving leads to our platform. 

We onboard affiliates through targeted outreach and provide them with clear incentives, such as competitive commission structures and access to exclusive resources, to ensure they actively promote folk. 

This network includes sales influencers on social media, outbound agencies, and tool comparison websites, who share folk with their networks. This mutually beneficial arrangement not only boosts our sign-ups but also provides affiliates with a steady income stream.

We work with affiliates, such as sales influencers on social media, outbound agencies, and tool comparison websites, who share folk with their networks. This mutually beneficial arrangement not only boosts our sign-ups but also provides affiliates with a steady income stream.

B. LinkedIn

Our "Avengers" style strategy combines the efforts of our ambassadors with contributions from the internal team to maximize LinkedIn’s potential. For example, our ambassadors often share insightful posts that resonate with decision-makers, while our internal team complements this by running targeted LinkedIn campaigns to expand reach. 

This collaborative approach has made LinkedIn a powerful channel for reaching and engaging with our target audience.

C. Cold Outreach

While we are still refining our cold outreach strategy, it remains an important channel for growth. By leveraging intent signals, we identify the right time to engage leads—such as when a company makes a sales hire—to ensure our outreach efforts are impactful.

D. SEO

EO continues to deliver long-term results despite its evolving nature. We focus on creating valuable content, such as in-depth blog posts, whitepapers, and case studies, that helps leads optimize their sales processes. Additionally, our technical SEO and backlink-building strategies, including partnerships with reputable industry websites, ensure that our website remains a magnet for organic traffic.

We focus on creating valuable content that helps leads optimize their sales processes while ensuring our technical SEO and backlink strategies are robust. These efforts make our website a magnet for organic traffic.

E. Paid

This consists of low-hanging fruit like search ads and Performance Max (PMax) campaign. These campaigns are optimized to deliver high-quality leads with a focus on measurable results.

F. YouTube

YouTube serves as a valuable channel for both user education and onboarding. We produce in-house content, such as tutorials and product walkthroughs, that addresses user pain points and demonstrates folk's value. 

We also collaborate with influencers. They expand our reach and reinforce the credibility of our messaging, making YouTube a big part of our long-term growth strategy. We collaborate with influencers and create in-house content to leverage the platform’s extended content lifespan. While production costs can be high, the long-term impact of YouTube content makes it a worthwhile investment.

G. Webinars

Weekly and ad-hoc webinars are another key pillar of our growth strategy. These sessions address specific topics and events, helping us connect with our audience while providing valuable insights and education.

Our conversion flow from lead to sign-ups

Our user journey is designed to guide leads from initial interaction to sign-up seamlessly. Here’s how it works:

• Website Engagement: Leads from channels like LinkedIn, affiliates, and SEO land on our website.
• Retargeting and Enrichment: We use tools like Meta for retargeting and Clay for contact enrichment to maximize engagement.
• Qualification Process: Qualified leads proceed to book demos or join webinars, while others explore self-service options within folk. We determine lead qualification based on factors such as company size, engagement metrics, and specific interactions on our website. This ensures that our follow-up efforts are both targeted and effective, driving higher conversion rates.

What drives our organic growth?

Organic channels contribute significantly to our lead generation, accounting for over 40% of our total sign-ups. By combining SEO, LinkedIn efforts, and webinars, we’ve built a robust system for attracting and nurturing leads naturally. Other actions we take include launches, product marketing, and email marketing. 

Future plans and optimization strategies

As we continue to refine our growth system, cold outreach and website conversion optimization are areas of focus. Future blog posts will delve into these strategies, offering deeper insights into how we turn leads into loyal users.

Conclusion

By treating growth as a system and leveraging a multi-channel strategy, we consistently achieve over 5,000 sign-ups per month. From affiliation to webinars, each channel plays a vital role in our success. Stay tuned for our next post, where we’ll share how we optimize conversions once a lead lands on our website. In the meantime, we’d love to hear about your favorite growth strategies or the challenges you’re facing—let’s grow together!

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